Review of The Stepfather (1987) by Tim K — 17 Apr 2012

(3 Stars) This is one of those movies where I've saw the remake first... The 2009 version of The Stepfather sucked horribly AND it gave away the original's plot elements. Luckily, the 87 version fares much better and has two things over the remake: Terry O'Quinn and an R-rating. It seems easy to praise O'Quinn since he's great on Lost, but he can balance nice guy and psycho very well. He is unpredictable and never bland, making the film suspenseful.

I know I should be looking at this film for what it is instead of what I want it to be, but the story, editing, and slasher-esque kills spurn what I think should be a low budget fun B-movie, but it seems to take the dramatic route. There's nothing wrong with this, but there's a genre clash, especially with the overly grim opening and action-filled climax. But The Stepfather is an okay suspense movie with a strong performance from the lead.